Weather Forecast

Fire in Beldenville displaces family of four

A Beldenville family of four was displaced after a fire broke out in their basement in the early morning hours of Wednesday, Sept. 23.

Ellsworth Fire Chief Brent Langer said the fire (at N6426 740th St., home to the Beldenville Flea Market) was contained to the home’s basement. Firefighters responded at 4:20 a.m. and were on the scene for about two hours. The family, including two children, was evacuated. Two cats were also rescued, although two guinea pigs died as a result of the fire.

Langer said the cause of the fire is under investigation. He said the home suffered minimal structural damage and heavy smoke damage throughout the entire house. He estimated the family will be displaced for awhile.

Pierce County property tax records list the owner of the property as Bradley D. Gardner.

The Beldenville Flea is scheduled to be held on the property 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. Katie Gardner said the flea market will still be open this weekend.

“We might have a little fire sale section from stuff we salvaged from the house,” she said. “But it’s a great bunch of people and we’ll be open.”

The Gardners have operated the flea market for the last three years: one event in the fall, one in the spring.

Sarah J. Nigbor serves as a regional editor for RiverTown Multimedia, a position she began in April 2017. She joined RiverTown Multimedia in October 2013 as a news reporter for the New Richmond News, before being appointed editor of the Pierce County Herald in Febraury 2015. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Spanish and French in 2001. She completed a minor in journalism in 2004.